James Potter and the Darker Path
by lhb77
Summary: What if Sirius Black was in Slytherin and what if James followed him to the house of snakes. How will James survive in the early days of Voldemort's rise to power, will he adapt and gain a belief his parents hate or play the dangerous role of an outcast. Meanwhile, James and his friends must be weary as pureblood students disappear in the forbidden forest with no explanation.
1. Chapter 1

Everything was about to change for a young boy with messy brown hair, through the gargantuan doors in front of him lay his future. To his left stood his first true friend in the wizarding world but before any conversation as to what the future may hold could continue, the stern looking professor McGonagall began the process of ushering then into the great hall. Many in the group of eleven year olds looked timid or amazed, while others looked simply happy or indifferent, the difference between the two groups clear as day. The group stopped in front of a stool with an accent wizards hat upon it. Before the new students had the opportunity to truly digest their new environment, the professor began to call names and the sorting began.

Adjusting his glasses and glancing back to his friend, the young boy had little time to dwell on the rounds of applause as each student departed to their new compatriots, until that same friend was called "Black, Sirius" James suddenly found himself looking with newfound attention to the sorting hat, Sirius had left his side and departed to the front with comfortable ease, a far cry from many of the new students thus far. McGonagall places the sorting hat on his head for mere moments before it made its announcement "SLYTHERIN" the table to the far side erupted in applause before the newest of the Black students began to make his way to their table. James felt nervous now, he had rarely spent time around children his own age, what with his parents being unusually old to be having children, even by wizarding standards. The other source of his worries came from what his parents had told him throughout his childhood, that slytherin was the source of dark wizards and witches, the sorts who had followed Grindlewald. His Gryffindor father and Hufflepuff mother would not approve of a slytherin in the family but James was reluctant to lose his first real friend.

His mind was suddenly cleared when he saw, for the first time, the girl stood in front of him. She seemed excited, but her eyes betrayed the fact that she knew, at least to some extent, about her surroundings. Surely she would be a pureblood or a half blood, in a roundabout sort of way James tried to justify her being in Slytherin as well, his already nervous mind conjuring a fantasy that made choosing Slytherin more bearable when faced with the wrath of his parents.

"Potter, James" suddenly shaken from his train of thought, James took his place on the stool, the vast number of candles obscured by the old hat now on his head "it's been a while since I've had a Potter to sort, normally it's quite easy, but with you I sense a reluctance to join your fathers house"

"I...I can't be a Gryffindor" James replied, still not quite sure of himself.

"You can't eh? Perhaps instead we should place you in Hufflepuff, the house of your mother"

"I don't think I would belong there either"

"Your mind pulls in one other direction, towards your young friend. If you do not wish for the alternatives, however easier they may be, then it must be SLYTHERIN"

Thunderous applause erupted from the table of snakes as a pureblood whose ancestry belonged to another house was welcomed for the first time. James focused his attention on Sirius and noticed he was sat beside a girl not too dissimilar in appearance to him, but with a slightly more regal appearance, she seemed mildly pleased at his place in their house. Sirius on the other hand had a beaming smile and looked to James with an approving nod, beside him an empty space which he took. "Congratulations James! I knew you would be joining us, it's nice to see another family embracing their pureblood heritage, my cousin here thought you would be a Gryffindor for sure"

"Your cousin?" James replied.

"Yes, allow me to introduce you to Bellatrix Black, my cousin and second year" for the first time James could see the girl up close, her smile gone briefly to be replaced by destain at a muggleborn being sorted into Ravenclaw. "It's a pleasure James, you've made the right decision instead of mingling with mudbloods and blood traitors"

James simply nodded in response, his attention now fixed on one of the few remaining students, the girl from before. His hope for her to be slytherin, however silly it seemed now, was still there.

"Evans, Lily" Sirius at last noticed where James' attention had drifted to and furrowed his brow in thought.

"Evans...Evans...she's a mudblood, I don't recognise her name. Why're you so focused on her?" James was briefly snapped out of his focus by Sirius' question.

"GRYFFINDOR" his eyes darted back to the girl he had seen, his hopes now dashed. He felt down that Lily would not be joining them, but perhaps it was for the best with all the blood supremacists that Slytherin had.

"James?" Sirius was eyeing him suspiciously now.

"Sorry, I er had run into her before boarding the train, I was hoping she was one of us" while James had meant a Slytherin, Sirius hadn't interpreted it that way.

"That's the problem with mudbloods, can't work out who to trust until the sorting ceremony. That's what my father always told me"

James wasn't paying much attention though, instead his thoughts drifted to the future, one that felt strange not to include this young girl in. A path which was once so clear was suddenly shrouded and replaced with another, without any clear reason James felt the urge to turn to his left once more, to look at Bellatrix, who was currently in a reserved discussion with another second year.

The rest of the feast was relatively uneventful and before any real introductions with the rest of the year could begin, the prefects were guiding the newest snakes down to the dungeons. The lower levels of the school had a much colder feel to them, not necessarily a harsher design but certainly a less welcoming one.

The lead prefect, a boy who had briefly introduced himself as Augustus Nott stopped before an unsuspecting bit of wall "this is the entrance to the Slytherin common room, you would be wise to remember its location and the password is purity" James frowned, his parents had always been against all the pureblood supremacy and this was a thinly veiled reminder that only those of a certain heritage would survive in Slytherin, there was nothing he could do and opening his mouth now would only alienate him or worse.

Beyond the wall lay a strange room, it was formal and had very fine furniture but it still had the unwelcoming feel that the rest of the dungeons enjoyed. Augustus once again stopped to address the first years " welcome to Slytherin, professor Slughorn is our head of house but has delegated the duty of welcoming you all to me" he gave a hard stare to one boy in particular who visibly gulped "we are the ambitious and the cunning, if you break the rules do not get caught, if you need help, have something another needs. We prefects will guide you back to the great hall in the morning for breakfast so I strongly recommend you all go to bed immediately" rather abruptly Augustus ended his introduction and went to talk to a group of older students by the fire, leaving James and the rest of the boys to find their way to their dormitory.

Beside James were three other boys, besides Sirius "right chaps, best if we introduce ourselves, I'm Sirius Black"

A boy with a crooked nose and greasy black hair answered first "Severus Snape"

Another with mousey brown hair, the same one who the prefect had stared at spoke up "Nathaniel Nott"

Lastly the final boy with a somewhat arrogant look began to talk "Evan Rosier, And you are?" He looked towards James, the only one seemingly uncomfortable in his current surroundings "James Potter" Evan didn't seem too impressed with this answer but did ease up somewhat "your family hasn't been in Slytherin before has it"

"Not to my knowledge no" James replied, worried slightly by the new direction of the conversation

"Well we all come from old Slytherin families, you would do well to learn from us"

It was Sirius who intervened next, preventing the discussion from escalating "well Evan, my family has been here longer than yours or Nathaniels and I think James will fit in just fine here, now I suggest we all find our dorm and get some sleep" Sirius' tone left no room for argument, ending the little show in the middle of the common room before it could really begin.

So this was his first day at Hogwarts thought James, but he couldn't shake from his mind, that girl or even his parents and the wrath he would incur once they knew he was a Slytherin.


	2. Chapter 2

The first morning of Hogwarts was filled with the same awe as the night before, James and his dorm had been up early for Augustus to escort them to breakfast as promised and once again there was a vast array of food to choose from.

"Hey James reckon we'll have defence first?" Asked Sirius.

James gulped down the last of his pumpkin juice before replying "I'm not sure, I was hoping to try transfiguration"

Sirius frowned for a moment "best be careful in transfiguration, Bellatrix told me that the head of Gryffindor is the transfiguration professor"

Now it was James' turn to frown "what's so bad about Gryffindor?"

"The house of the headstrong and foolish? Ha! They're the opposite of what Slytherin stand for" Sirius replied "why're you so defensive about Gryffindor" his casual smirk darkened suddenly "it's not because of the mudblood right?"

"What no!" James exclaimed suddenly "my dad was in Gryffindor" and I was meant to be too, he thought.

"I...I don't think we should fight openly" Nathaniel spoke for the first time that morning.

"He's right, we cannot show weakness to the other houses, we are cunning and ambitious after all" Severus added, his tone almost condescending.

Once again however Sirius was smiling "it's all right, I forgot that James's family is new to Slytherin, I'm sorry if I offended"

James replied with a wave of his hand "don't worry about it, I think I'm just nervous about telling my dad"

James turned to Nathaniel and Snape on the other side of the bench, catching a sympathetic look from the former. Before any discussion could continue however, a plump man with a set of fine yet practical robes casually sauntered down to their group "good morning Slytherins! I'm professor Slughorn, sorry I couldn't attend the welcome ceremony last night but I got a tad caught up with an old student of mine, I trust Augustus welcomed you all?" Slughorn fixed his gaze on Nathaniel in particular.

"He was most helpful sir, a fine choice for prefect. Might I ask though is there anything we can help you with?" Evan interjected.

"Oh yes how forgetful of me, your timetables. Say, do any of you know where I might find the first year girls" whilst talking the jovial professor began to hand out pieces of identical parchments.

"Girls!" Nathaniel exclaimed, seemingly afraid of the concept of the opposite sex.

"Oh yes my boy, you didn't think this was a single sex school now did you eh? Ah I believe that's them now" Slughorn replied.

Turning towards the entrance of the great hall, James saw a group of girls being escorted by a Slytherin prefect. There were three in total, the first was quite tall with long blonde hair, the second dark skinned and easiest the happiest of the three and the third had brown hair and a permanent scowl fixed to her face. The trio casually made there way to Slughorn and quietly retrieved their timetables before joining the boys at the table. James was strangely surprised, he didn't remember seeing any girls sorted into Slytherin last night, but then again it had been quite a whirlwind for him.

The first girl, clearly the leader, spoke first "I'm Ophelia Greengrass, these are my friends Natasha Zabini and Theodora Warrington" she gestured to the second and third girls respectively.

"I'm Evan Rosier, this is Sirius Black, Severus Snape, Nathaniel Nott and James Potter" As Evan called out each name, each boy gave a small gesture of hello except Nathaniel.

"So you're the Gryffindor turncoat, word is going round the school that your family have been lions for generations, why the sudden break from tradition James?" Ophelia's tone was lighthearted but it was clear she wanted an answer, and James already knew he did not want to admit the truth.

"Well they're all a bit stupid really aren't they, so headstrong and foolish. I'm smarter than that" James replied, he tried the arrogant tone half his year seemed to have mastered but only ended up sounding as though he were uninterested, a step in the right direction at least.

"Ha!" Sirius exclaimed "now you're getting it James!" Once again Sirius was beaming, an expression which James and the rest of the Slytherins found infectious. A warm feeling spread through him as for the first time, even in a small way, he was accepted by his year.

"As fun as this has been we had really ought to be making our way to defence, it would not bode well for us if we are late to our first lesson" Severus had the same condescending tone as before. However he was right and with a little grumbling, the group of Slytherins proceeded to find there way to the defence classroom.

There arrival last night in the darkness hid the true size of the school from its new students and after navigating many corridors and trying to get past the moving staircases, they managed to find there way to an isolated classroom already filled with Ravenclaws. Of course the studious ones would be there first, thought James. At the front of the class stood a small bit fearsome looking woman who simply stared at the Slytherins as they found there desks and set up for the lesson.

James was of course paired up with Sirius, while Theodore and Severus took the table in front of them, Evan and Natasha behind and Ophelia and Theodora behind them. Once all the commotion of setting up was done, the professor strode slowly but confidently down each row of desks.

"Greetings class, my name is Professor Goodwinter. The time for exchanging pleasantries was last night, now is the time for work. Turn to page 34 of your books. Today we shall be studying Acromantulas, there's rumours of a colony somewhere in Scotland so it's best to be prepared and know what to look for" the professor stopped mid sentence as she fixed her gaze on James" mister Potter, what is the incantation for the spider repelling spell"

"I don't know professor" James was confused, why had she singled him out? He was unimportant. The professor gave a slight huff of indignation before turning to the Ravenclaw side of the class "mister Blythe, name a key feature of the Acromantula"

"Erm there quite big?" The boy seemed as put out as James was for being put on the spot. Instead of berating or even ignoring the answer, Goodwinter showed a slight smile, it was unnerving to James to say the least.

"That's not quite what I was looking for, try again. Perhaps it would be best to think along the lines of what can be gained from an acromantula" James couldn't understand why the professor was being so nice to the Ravenclaw, Sirius was silently fuming beside him.

"Oh! There venom is quite valuable" the professor seemed satisfied with this answer and proceeded back to her desk to retrieve her own copy of the text.

"Five points to Ravenclaw for reading ahead and five points from Slytherin for not being prepared" James was stunned. How could a professor be allowed to show such prejudice and favouritism amongst her students. The Slytherins didn't pay much attention to the rest of the lesson and while they didn't lose any more points, Ravenclaw did gain another ten.

Once they were dismissed and outside the classroom Sirius could not contain himself any longer "what a bloody disaster! We have some moodblood lover as our defence professor, I thought the Goodwinters were an old family, one of the good ones! We'll have lost hundreds of points by the end of the year!" The rest of the Slytherins began to join in with their own complains, about mudbloods, poor quality professors and betraying ones heritage. James stayed largely silent throughout, a fact his newfound friends failed to notice in all there ramblings bar one.

"Are you alright James?" The boy in question stopped as did Nathaniel, he let out a harsh sigh.

"I'm sure you were all told that Slytherins were seen as evil as a way to prepare yourself, I was told it as a warning. Now that I am a slytherin I feel like I'm not prepared for that sort of treatment by the rest of the school" Nathaniel looked thoughtful for a moment before replying.

"You can see how everyone else is reacting, we are all as upset as you. We're all in the same boat" the inclusive message of Nathaniels words have James a small smile, perhaps everything was going to be okay so long as they sticked together in classes.

He glanced to each and every one of his newfound friends, the only people in his year who would probably accept him and felt nothing but hope for the future in that brief moment. This elation however was short lived as the group returned to the great hall for lunch and James spied his family owl gliding down to meet him, he would finally have to tell his parents what had happened at the sorting ceremony and hope that they weren't too angry.


	3. Chapter 3

All the commotion of the hall seemingly ground to a halt for James, his family owl continued its descent to the end of the Slytherin table, right where his friends were now sitting down with Sirius and Severus eyeing him with concern and suspicion respectively. Fear welled up inside him as he willed his body to move forward. Any suspicion of James being a Gryffindor would be long gone alongside whatever courage he may have had before this moment. Sirius followed James' eyes to the cause of his concern and gently plucked the letter from the owls beak, giving it a quiet instruction to wait in the owlery for its young master.

The noise and bustle of the hall returned to normal for James as Sirius handed him the letter "James is this letter for you? Is everything okay?" James tried to speak but found his mouth incredibly dry "it...it's from my parents. They'll want to know if I was sorted into Gryffindor or Hufflepuff. They've been talking about it for years now, debating which of them I would take after. They also told me that Slytherin was a house for blood supremacists and dark wizards like Grindlewald" no matter how hard he tried, James could not shake the overwhelming shame he felt, partly due to the realisation that he had betrayed his parents but also partly for admitting he was expected to have betrayed his very first friend in the wizarding world.

Sirius looked thoughtful for a moment before replying " bugger, listen James I know they are your parents, but they're not like us. We, your friends are here and we will stick by you. Your blood has cried out to be with others of its kind and your parents will have to accept its your choice. Besides we couldn't have you running round as a Gryffindor could we? The red wouldn't suit you" he finished with a slight smile, James returned the smile but without the emotion behind it.

James took the letter from Sirius and sighed before opening it.

Dear James,

I hope you are settling in well. Your mother and I planned on waiting for you to write to us however we are both far too excited to know which house you have ended up in. Your mother and I have a friendly wager over the matter and the loser has to make dinner without magic! Now to settle this I would like you to tell your mother that lions are better than badgers. But in all seriousness, even if you end up in another house I would be proud of a studious or hard working son.

I know your mother and I kept you somewhat isolated from those your own age growing up but we did what we thought best. I know you will make friends with the right sort, perhaps before you have even read this letter. Be safe James and write back soon.

Love,

Father

Any flicker of hope that the situation could still be salvaged died within James, it was clear that by other houses his father was referring to Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. He looked up at Sirius "well is it bad?" He inquired.

"Worse than bad" James replied. He handed the letter to Sirius and studied his features as he read it. By the end he looked both insulted and saddened.

"Blood traitors think they're too good for slytherin, you're going to have to tell them aren't you" Sirius was sympathetic but the angry undertone could not be missed.

"I am and I don't have much time before they get suspicious" James took a piece of parchment from his bag and finally sat down beside his friends. It was clear now that the rest of the group were also interested in what had transpired, with a swift nod James gave Sirius permission to fill them in as he wrote his reply.

Mother and Father,

It's strange being around so many people, particularly those my age but I have made a few friends. I met my first on the train, his name is Sirius, he's far more confident and outgoing than me but he is also kind and has been supportive since we arrived. There's a small group of us now, the boys and girls from my year. My first class of the year was defence against the dark arts, the professor doesn't seem to like me or any of the others from my house. Speaking of my house, I have to tell you that I didn't end up in Gryffindor, or Hufflepuff. I am in Slytherin.

I remember all the stories and warnings you gave me but they all seem alright, as I said Sirius has been supportive and his cousin Bellatrix Black has also been welcoming, they all have. They're not dark or evil and I promise I won't do anything like that, I just want to be with my friends.

Love,

James

James hoped it would be enough to convince his father to support him but it was very unlikely and he could not help but wonder what would happen next.

"I'm done" he said aloud "now I just need to find the Owlery" Sirius smiled in response.

"I know just the person for that" he walked off to the other end of the Slytherin table and began talking to someone, but James couldn't see who.

"Sirius told us all what's happened, hopefully your parents will come around " it was Ophelia who broke the uncomfortable silence first.

"Indeed, Slytherins are supposed to be the best, it would not do if you were worried about your parents rather than studying" Severus spoke with the same monotonous voice he always seemed to have, showing little interest in what was going on.

The comments of support for James continued until all his group had spoken. All could be broadly broken down into those who showed actual concern such as Ophelia and those who were more concerned about house pride such as Severus, only Nathaniel spoke differently but that was only because he could do little more than stutter in the presence of so many girls.

Sirius returned with Bellatrix in tow, presumably Sirius has shown her the letter since she too looked insulted "hello again James, Sirius has informed me of your situation. I can take you to the Owlery if you are ready now" the last sentence was not a question and James quickly gathered his belongings and followed the second year.

When James has first arrived at the castle it had been dark, thus he had failed to truly appreciate the sheer size of it. It felt as though he and Bellatrix had walked for ages although that was due to his nerves, his companion seemed to notice this and broke the silence "how are you settling in to Slytherin"

"Quite well I think, I'll admit I was a little nervous about it all" Bellatrix smiled at his response.

"A little? You look petrified" finally taking a moment to focus on himself, James willed himself to smile back at her.

"I'm not dead yet, but when my parents get there hands on me it may be another story" the air in the room seemed to get a little colder.

"Deplorable behaviour, I knew that blood traitors were foolish but I did not think they would turn on their own blood" once again James had been misinterpreted, all those around him seemed to assume that just because he was a slytherin that he was a blood supremacist. In all honesty James didn't know what he believed, his parents or his friends, but he knew that correcting any of them would leave him an outsider in his own house and alone.

"So is Sirius your only relative at the school?" Bellatrix seemed startled by the question but was happy to reply.

"Oh no, there's my sister Andromeda who is in her fourth year, my cousin Evan who is in your year" James suddenly felt confused.

"How come Sirius didn't recognise him then?" Surely she has to be pulling my leg, he thought to himself.

"Oh he's my mother's nephew, the Rosier's don't get on too well with Aunt Walburga, that's Sirius' mum" any further questions died in James' throat, without realising it they had wondered into a tower unlike the rest in the school, it was an absolute mess. Windows were missing, clearly to allow the birds better access while feathers and droppings pooled on the floor. Amongst the dozens of owls James spotted his fathers perched not too far away "give this to mother or father" he told her before she flew away. It was done, there was no turning back now.

"Thank you for showing me the way, I would have gotten lost on my own" James said.

"It's alright James, now I had best be off to History. Sirius told me you have potions next, don't worry Slughorn will like you. Oh and about your parents, I hope everything will be okay" for some reason this small declaration of hope helped James feel better, an effect his friends were unable to have on him. He could focus more clearly on his studies for now knowing that by dinner he would probably have his reply. He had chosen this path and no matter how scared he may be he would walk it. The only question now would be if he would build up the courage to admit to his friends that he didn't care what someone's blood was, or if he would learn to care.


	4. Chapter 4

For a month James had heard nothing from his parents. No angry letters, no turning up at the school, not even a summons from the headmaster, nothing. The effect it was having on him was also starting to show; barely a day went by without Severus berating James for appearing so emotional in front of the other houses. It wouldn't have made a difference, James thought, they would all mock the Slytherins regardless. At first Sirius and Theodore had been incredibly supportive, with Sirius even offering to let James stay with the Blacks if things turned sour with his own parents but there reassurances did little to help and eventually they gave up trying to console the young turncoat.

Evan and the girls had given up caring about how James felt after the first week, well Evan probably didn't care from the start although his hostility seemed to be spreading slowly to the other first year Slytherins. Before coming to Hogwarts, James hadn't interacted with anyone his age, his elderly parents rarely left Potter Manor and so he did not spend a lot of his childhood with others. Being at Hogwarts, even if it had only been a few weeks, had changed him and for the first time in his life he felt truly alone.

James just wanted something to happen because he knew it would. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't shake how he felt but Professor Goodwinter had set all the purebloods additional homework he couldn't afford to not do, so he proceeded to a small, disused classroom tucked away in the dungeons which had become a second home during his free time. As James left the Slytherin common room he made himself small against the wall to allow a group of Slytherins to make their way past into the common room, he refused to look at any of them instead waiting for the group to pass. One of the figures seemed to stop as they delicately places a hand on James' shoulder, his head slowly turned towards the direction of the person who had tried to break through his guilt and fear to find a fearful looking Bellatrix staring back at him.

For a moment James forgot his own worries, instead replaced with confusion as to why the normally strong willed Black looking so concerned.

"It's not safe to leave the common room right now James, especially in the state your in" Bellatrix snaked her arm around James' and began to lead him back inside.

"What's going on? Why isn't it safe to leave?" James replied.

"Augustus Nott has disappeared, Lucius found a message telling all purebloods to submit or face the same fate" He now felt a new emotion, shock. While he didn't know the Slytherin prefect well, despite everything he was still quite close to his younger brother.

James was speechless, he allowed himself to be taken by Bellatrix back into the common room which was quickly becoming crowded by Slytherins from all years, the older students looking more angry than scared and the younger students the reverse. At the centre, sitting uncomfortably in one of the leather chairs was a young boy with long blonde hair, he looked as white as a ghost but maintained a blank face, whether this was from shock or hiding his emotions James didn't know.

One of the older boys, forced his way to the younger Slytherin in the middle and addressed him loud enough for the rest to hear "are you certain Malfoy? That it was a warning to purebloods?"

Lucius shifted uncomfortably in his chair, clearing his throat politely before replying "indeed it was, I also found his wand...snapped in two" this final statement caused a great uproar from the collective snakes, shouts of mudbloods and blood traitors were easy to distinguish within the mass of noise. A girl stepped forward, a venomous glint in her eye " those filthy mudbloods have not only attacked the great house of Salazar Slytherin but they have also declared war on the ancient and Noble house of Nott. We must not let this-" any further ranting was stopped by the sudden opening of the slytherin common room.

Albus Dumbledore strode in with an air of supremacy, an unhappy professor Slughorn at his side. The room had become completely silent, the headmaster did not speak but instead took his time to look across the sea of green before him. His expression was stern, borderline angry and this carried onto his voice when he finally addressed them "yes, Augustus Nott has disappeared and there has been a threat made against the So called Pureblood students of this school" Dumbledore paused and once more looked round, as if to challenge another student to voice there feelings "but at this time we must not divide ourselves further by giving in to cowardly acts of revenge. Justice will come and I have every confidence that Augustus will be safe. I ask you trust your fellow students rather that doubt them and together we can move on from this event " the headmaster paused once again, James took the opportunity to look around at his fellow Slytherins, gauging their reactions. Many were unaffected by the headmasters words but a select few seemed calmer or simply placated. He also noticed the vice like grip Bellatrix had on his arm, looking at her it was clear she was struggling to contain her rage " any attempts at retaliation will be dealt with by me personally, this is a school and not a duelling ground" with that final disappointing statement the headmaster left as confidently as he arrived.

The Slytherins remained silent until a few moments after the entrance was once more sealed. Soft murmurs slowly began to rise up but they lacked the same zeal as before. Although it was clear many Slytherins disagreed with the headmaster they now preferred to keep such statements more to themselves, even in the company of those who were likeminded.

Bellatrix was still locked in a trance like state, a silent anger. James softly cleared his throat before speaking "erm Bellatrix, would you mind letting go of my arm" it wasn't that James minded the closeness, but it was the fact that her fingers had gone white from how hard she was holding him and a tingling sensation had spread to his fingers.

"What? Oh I'm sorry James. I didn't realise. Can you believe that filthy blood traitor? He wants us to not react to an attack on our kind? What if you were next or I, we must have retribution before we are all threatened" James remained silent for a moment, regardless of the distant relationship he now had with his friends he did not want to see any of them hurt and the thought of being abducted terrified him more than his parents.

"It's time we stick together" it was Sirius who spoke next having made his way to where his cousin and the youngest Potter stood, his normal smirk replaced with a grim expression "I know we haven't been there as we should have James, but we were trying to give you space. I hope you can forgive me because your fellow purebloods need you"

"Alright, don't worry about what's happened. Right now we just need to focus on keeping the others safe" yet again James was misinterpreted however, he had meant his friends but Sirius hadn't took it that way "excellent, you know Evan has been calling you a blood traitor behind your back, but I always knew you were true to us"

"Take care of him won't you Sirius? I need to see how Lucius is feeling" with that final statement, Bellatrix left the group, making her way towards Lucius who was now standing by the fireplace, trying to deflect the few questions still directed to him by the more inquisitive Slytherins.

With the barrier between the two broken, Sirius began to lead James back to the group of first years, most of them were muttering the same statements as the two members of the Black family.

Nathaniel, his eyes still red and puffy, was the first to welcome the wayward turncoat back "J...James it's nice to talk to you again" realising the female company stood just behind him, Nathaniel once again froze, unable to talk.

Despite everything, his typical reaction to girls was oddly welcoming to James "I'm sorry for being moping around recently, I should've been there for you Nathaniel. We will find your brother" the other boy went stiff, before a few more tears fell, a silent nod was the only thanks James got.

For the next few days, James worked relentlessly to catch up on his missed school work, with the help of Sirius and even Severus he quickly caught up in most subjects. His best friend also revealed a room where the first year purebloods from Ravenclaw and Slytherin had been meeting to practice spells there muggle loving defence teacher wouldn't let them use. He never called her that of course, James still hadn't decided whether he believed in Pureblood supremacy. He didn't just want to go with what his friends thought without evidence but his parents expected him to do the same for Muggleborn equality.

One day after spell practice James asked Sirius about the ideas of blood purity "it's quite simple really, our magic doesn't fade where as mudblood magic does. This school has accepted mudbloods since it's founding, but where are there families? Why are there no mudblood grandparents and only a few parents, there magic can only survive a generation or two. They come along, telling us our society is wrong when they are a part of it for such a short time" James pondered on his friends words for a moment before replying.

"If that's the case where did purebloods come from?" Sirius seemed shocked at the question, or rather the idea that it had to be asked and it wasn't something James knew already.

"Well sometimes, although it's very rare, the grandchild of a mudblood can be born with magic. They are known as firstbloods and are the first of a new Pureblood line. When my father first told me about them he told me that only about half a dozen are born each century. My family's firstblood was born in 658 AD which means that my family gained its house status in 958 AD and it's ancient and Noble status in 1258" James nodded in understanding. Although he understood now why Sirius believed what he did, to preserve a way of life and a heritage the Muggleborns would never truly be able to be a part of, he still didn't find himself agreeing with it. The fear of his parents still present in the back of James's mind.

But regardless of how he felt tensions still ran high in the castle and it was only a matter of time before a Muggleborn was emboldened by what had happened or a Pureblood sought revenge.

**A/N I'm sorry for disappearing this summer, I had begun work on this chapter back in July but between having to deal with other things and changing ideas for this fanfic it took me a lot longer. I wanted to make several changes to this chapter specifically which I worked on irregularly these past few months, I'm not sure how noticeable it is where I've edited bits to add stuff in which will be relevant later down the line. I know this isn't the best fanfic out there but I promise to stick to it no matter what and finish it. I do have a plan that goes through to year 4 right now and unfortunately the first year is going to be the least interesting in terms of self contained plot but is very important for setting the scene for later years which is why I'm trying to get through these first chapters relatively quickly while still adding in the essential bits. If anyone has any suggestions or thoughts then please feel free to message me or leave a review. **


	5. Chapter 5

Tensions were running high in Hogwarts. So far no more acts of violence had taken place but both sides were prepared to fight at a moments notice. The mood in the dungeons had become uncomfortable, particularly around the sixth year students who were friends with Augustus, who had still not been found. Outside the castle a layer of snow was slowly beginning to build up and after yet another study session, Sirius had suggested that the group to outside for a while to clear there heads. James had spent the past two days engrossed in his transfiguration book, trying to complete the last of his backlogged homework and was thankful for the escape his best friend was offering.

"Aren't we a little old for snowball fights Sirius?" Asked Ophelia, while she and James had made up, she was still upset about the loss of Augustus. Like many of the younger Slytherins she didn't know him personally but she knew what his disappearance represented, a threat to all purebloods such as herself.

"Aren't you a little young to be such a bore?" Sirius replied with his usual smirk, he was probably the only one who seemed to be coping well with recent events much to the annoyance of others who mistook his relaxed attitude for a lack of care. To those who were close to him, he was a much needed source of entertainment to his fellow Slytherins, pulling pranks and making jokes when everyone else seemed down.

Instead of replying Sirius threw a small snowball at Ophelia, catching her off guard. James was surprised to say the least, he hadn't even seen him make a ball let alone hide it. To say that the girl was shocked was an understatement, at first James thought she might explode with anger but instead, the shock gave way to a smile with Ophelia reaching down to make her own snowball and Sirius doing the same. However, her own snowball failed to connect with her target and instead struck Nathaniel in the face.

Before long the entire group, bar Severus, were happily engaged in a snowball fight, with Sirius, Nathaniel and James on one side and Ophelia, Natasha, Theodora and Evan on the other. It was almost strange, to be acting so carefree when Nathaniel and James in particular had such significant worries hanging over there heads but at the same time such a break was needed before they all went mad with worry.

" lookout Sirius!" Shouted James, as a particularly fast snowball hurled towards him, thrown by a mischievous looking Ophelia still trying to get her revenge. Sirius calmly dodged it and threw his own in return, striking the girl in the leg.

A volley of snowballs flew at the boys in response, with most hitting there targets. Panting and covered with snow, James moved to get a better angle of attack on Evan, to his right Nathaniel did the same. Wordlessly, the two threw there snowballs, with James striking him in the chest, and Nathaniel's ball soaring over his head and into the back of a nearby student.

The Slytherins unconsciously grouped together as the student who had been hit was revealed to be a Gryffindor, his group of friends migrating around him as well. The boy wore tatty robes and had a few scratches on his face and had four other lions with him. One was looking incredibly terrified of the impending confrontation while two older looking boys seemed ready to fight at a moments notice. Behind the boys were two girls, one who looked just as ready to fight as the older boys and, James' jaw dropped, it was the girl from before. Her red hair stood out sorely against the white background and he was surprised he hadn't recognised her before but it was that girl. Lily was her name if he remembered correctly.

"You filthy purebloods! Why don't you go somewhere else to mess about" one of the older boys cried, his wand already in his hand. The other Slytherins noticed this too, and took a more defensive stance. Not that it would do much good, thanks to there defence teacher they didn't know a single spell to use to defend themselves but at least they were able to teach themselves a bit in private, if they were lucky enough to hold them off. Although right now it seemed like a classroom education would be better than practicing with a few friends. Sirius seemed to glare at the boy who had spoken, all while wearing his normal smirk "I thought you were a Pureblood too Frank, I wonder if your father knows he's got a filthy blood traitor under his roof" the boy, Frank seemed even angrier now.

"My father has given up on your bigoted beliefs and I'm proud to say I helped him. Tell me Sirius, if you're still stuck believing that archaic crap, which one of your cousins are you engaged to?" Frank retorted. James was confused to say the least, he had never heard of anyone marrying there own cousin. Clearly the other Slytherins knew what Frank meant since they reacted negatively, a mix of anger and offence on his friends faces, but he was clueless.

"You know we don't practice that anymore, none of the families do. No one wants to bring a squib into this world" Sirius was on the defensive now and it was showing, his smirk gone, to be replaced with a look of shame.

"You're pathetic Black, if you're going to be traditional at least stick to all the old ways. Or maybe you would prefer to become a traitor too? Mix up the gene pool a little" Sirius was red with anger now, any second he could cast a spell that would surely be ineffective against an older student who was clearly in control of the situation. James couldn't stand it anymore, moving swiftly he placed himself between his best mate and his opponent his own wand in hand, if only to be a little intimidating.

"I think it's time you left, you...you traitor" James couldn't believe he had just said that, he looked over to Lily to see a hurt expression on her face "it was an accident and it should have been left at that" Frank seemed surprised at the sudden intrusion, but his shock didn't last long.

"Interesting choice of words Potter. You've become pretty well known in Gryffindor for exactly that. Surely you must know your father is one of the most liberal members of the Wizengamot and your family has been in this house for generations" James froze, the memories of his fathers letter and his reply came to the forefront of his mind, the fear that he had buried once again threatened to consume him.

"I believe Potter is correct, there is no need for violence" It was Severus this time who intervened, speaking with more emotion than James had ever seen, it was clear too he was upset by what had happened but James couldn't work out why. Then he noticed that he was staring directly at Lily, flicking his eyes to her he saw her give Severus a brief smile. Sirius and Frank seemed to notice this as well, giving suspicious looks to there respective friends.

"Hmm, maybe we should leave you inbreds alone. It's not like you know any spells you could use against us, if you can even cast a spell that is. Come on Remus, let's get you cleaned up" with that Frank turned and led the boy who had been hit with a snowball away, his eyes never leaving Lily. The anxiety within the Slytherin group dissipated but James and Sirius remained fixed on Severus, keen to get some answers.

"You know Snape, it seems like you were awfully familiar with that mudblood" suddenly Snape's head snapped round to stare at Sirius head on, he glared venomously at the other boy.

"My relationship with her is none of your business" James had never seen Severus so furious. Sirius once again began to get angry and was about to speak, until a look of realisation hit him.

"Hang on a second, Snape...that's not a Pureblood name. You're a filthy moodblood yourself!" Sirius spoke with an accusing tone, his voice rising from a whisper to a shout within moments.

"I am a halfblood, my mother was a Prince" Severus replied hotly, although not as angrily as before, James noted.

"So at least you've got some good blood in you" Sirius replied with an air of superiority, the underlying anger still there.

The rest of the group had shifted away from Severus during the short lived argument, leaving him isolated. James felt sorry for him and wanted to voice a more moderate opinion. Snape after all had been there friend and had helped James immensely with his potions and herbology work. But before he could say anything, the other boys emotionless mask had slipped back in place and he walked away swiftly.

For the rest of the day the Slytherins were much more reserved, relaxing quietly rather than playing outside. But throughout it all James couldn't shake what had happened from his mind, the fight, seeing Lily, the comments Frank had made. Seeing her again couldn't have gone much worse, James thought to himself, he couldn't understand why but he felt compelled to spend time with her. Part of him wanted to abandon his friends, who he had struggled to maintain relationships with, to be with her. By the time the group headed for the great hall, Lily was the only thing on his mind.

"James try not to take what Longbottom said to heart. He's a good for nothing traitor" James was shaken from his thoughts after hearing his name. At first he was confused, his mind still focused on the Gryffindor redhead, but then he realised Sirius was talking about the comments that Frank had made.

"What did he mean by calling us inbred" Sirius looked startled for a moment before replying.

"Well in the early eighteen hundreds, a book was published showing that for some time Pureblood numbers had been slowly decreasing while mudblood births were on the rise. Many purebloods panicked and realised that many families had few children while others had too many...so the larger Pureblood families made the next generation marry into the family" now it was James's turn to be shocked, the idea of having to marry a relative disgusted him "the practice was carried out by most families for around fifty years. When the children of these couples were revealed to be squibs most the time the practice was outlawed. Although some families practiced it for a few decades more. Unfortunately it was around long enough to become a key talking point for liberals to argue for reform and has been ever since" Sirius finished, his voice little more than a whisper. Clearly he had been taught from a young age to view this entire time with shame and rightly so James thought.

With every passing day there seemed to be a new obstacle that would appear for James, first his parents, the attack on Augustus, hurting Lily and now this revelation. It seemed to him that life in the den of snakes was just getting harder and James began to doubt how much longer he could stay there if his only reason was to stay with his friends, with one such friend having been lost that day.

**A/N sorry it's taken me so long to upload this. I've had quite a lot on and I wanted to get this chapter right, which led to a lot of rewrites. I'm very far behind schedule but worry not because I will not abandon this fanfic. To try and make things up, I'm happy to announce that I will soon be uploading the first chapter of a new fanfic which will focus on a set of OC purebloods in the post second wizarding war period. That will, like this fanfic, address the issue of evil coming from both sides of the political spectrum. **


	6. Chapter 6

James slowly sat up, still feeling groggy from the poor nights sleep he had. Ever since Severus had been revealed to be a halfblood, he had not been seen in the Slytherin common room or boys dorm. James couldn't help but feel guilty for what happened , the argument which had led to the revelation. Glancing over at the still made bed near his, James knew that Severus had still not returned. A loud yawn to his right interrupted his musings, turning around James saw his best friend, Sirius Black, had awoken.

"I am absolutely starving, fancy heading to the Great Hall now before the morning rush?" Despite having just woken, Sirius still sounded cocky.

James smirked "we may as well. We've got Slughorn first thing remember?" Sirius frowned, the happiness of having a quiet breakfast shattered.

"don't remind me, I almost blew up the cauldron in our last lesson" James laughed, the memory of his best friend boasting about his skills to the point he ignored his off-colour potion coming to his mind.

"and you've had plenty of opportunity to prove to him that you can do better"

"its not my fault that he spends all his time with the traitor, no doubt trying to induct him into his club" Sirius spoke with obvious disdain, traitor being the term that the Slytherins now used to refer to Severus.

"that's besides the point and you know it, come on lets get ready then" the two dressed in a comfortable silence and began the long journey to the Great Hall. Although they could not confirm it, James and his fellow Slytherins were convinced that they had the furthest to travel just to get something to eat. It was well known that Slytherins and Ravenclaws were generally on amicable terms, one had informed James during an astronomy lesson that it took them longer to get to the hall from the potions classroom that there own common room. Although he had no way of knowing where the other two common rooms were or more importantly, how far away they were, James was confident they could not be further away than the dungeons or the second highest tower in Hogwarts.

James and Sirius had the time to eat at a slow pace, relaxing and chatting about the day ahead and a prank Sirius planned to pull on his cousin, Andromeda. Before long the rest of there year had joined them and they began to make there way back down to the dungeons for the potions lesson. Thinking back, James remembered that they would not be brewing today, something he was thankful for since potions was definitely not his strong point.

As they entered Professor Slughorn was stood by the front, muttering to himself and smiling slightly as he read a letter, upon noticing the arrival of the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs, he put it away and smiled "ah good morning first years, I trust you are all prepared for today's lesson. We shall be discussing the twelve uses of dragon blood"

There was a collective groan from the approaching students as the painfully boring topic was revealed. Evan quietly remarked that only a Ravenclaw could like such a discussion, which earned a laugh from the Slytherin students.

James took his normal seat beside Sirius and the two opened there books to the appropriate section "right so we are supposed to spend an entire lesson discussing something which only takes up a page and a half of the textbook?" James remarked.

"I imagine he will have us move onto something else afterwards" Ophelia interjected from the desk behind there's.

"probably the uses of the forgetfulness potion" Sirius replied, earning a slight chuckle from his friends.

Glancing at the appropriate page, James saw the first use " so apparently its quite good at removing spots"

"perhaps we should all chip in to get a bottle for Longbottom" Sirius replied, barely containing his laughter as he spoke. The older Gryffindor had a face full of spots at the moment, much to the amusement of the Slytherins who had been unfortunate enough to face him a week ago.

"Only if we lace it with poison first" Ophelia joined in, she sounded jovial as well but with a venomous undertone.

Any further discussions were cut short when there was a sharp knock at the door. Interruptions to a lesson were, in James' limited experience, incredibly rare and thus warranted the attention of all the students who wished to be nosey about what was going on. Slughorn however, did not seem to notice the sudden silence and called out for whoever was there to enter. An older Gryffindor boy entered, looking very annoyed at having to be a messenger.

"uh professor, there's someone here to see you. He said its to do with repaying a favour? And that you were expecting him."

The professor seemed to be pleased with this "thank you very much Bell. Would you be so kind as to tell Lucius that I shall be along presently"

Before walking out the door, Slughorn seemed to remember where he was and turned to address the class "er finish your reading and discuss with your classmates. I shall be back before the end of the lesson" and with that he left.

For a moment James felt angry that they would be deprived of a lesson when he had worked so hard to catch up. But he quickly put it behind himself. Realising that the time could be better spent reading ahead in the textbook. Sirius seemed to have other ideas however.

"how about we head out for a game of Quidditch eh James?" he enquired "you were pretty good in our flying lessons" it was true that James had taken to flying quite naturally and he was very keen to try a sport his parents had, in there seclusion, told him little about.

His thoughts drifting back to his parents brought him nothing but guilt now and he dare not dwell on it any longer "I'm not sure Sirius, we would have to sneak out, break into the broom shed and hope no one is using the pitch"

Sirius however seemed undeterred "that all? I thought it would be at least a small challenge"

"I wouldn't mind a game" Nathaniel interjected. His response shocked his friends, who had seen him very down since the disappearance of his brother.

"see even Nathaniel wants to join us"

Before James could reply a Hufflepuff interjected "great, a bunch of snakes learning how to cheat"

"at least we don't rally behind a badger, Hufflepuff really is the most pathetic of the Houses" James was shocked, he had said that and with such venom as well. He hadn't even thought about saying it, the words had just come out. Part of him was guilty again for insulting his mother's house while another part felt pride in his display of loyalty to his friends.

"we've won the Quidditch cup five years in a row now, while Slytherin has lost almost every game. You must be so concerned about how pure your blood is to learn to cheat properly" Sirius and Ophelia seemed particularly enraged by this comment, the two had been the most vocal about the encounter with Longbottom and it seemed they would now get a chance to vent that anger.

"everything comes back to cheating doesn't it, we can certainly tell your not a Ravenclaw. Not that it would help you much mudblood" Sirius retorted.

Instead of getting angry, the Hufflepuff seemed to smirk at this. A trap James thought "well at least I'll be safe from whoever took dear Augustus, although with any luck the bastard is dead now" the Slytherins seemed stunned by this, with Nathaniel close to tears.

Sirius was seething now, the infamous Black anger he had warned James about finally coming to the surface. The boy was very clearly drawing his wand and preparing to hex the Hufflepuff, when he noticed that the boy was not being backed up by his house. James pulled out his own wand, as did Ophelia and rather reluctantly, Nathaniel. Evan, Natasha and Theodora seemed to slowly back away, trying to get as close to the door as possible before the inevitable violence took place. The would be outnumbered eight to four.

"Petrificus Totalus" Sirius cried, freezing the first boy as a perfect pillar.

With a single spell all hell broke loose, James found himself facing a menacing looking boy and a thin girl. Both attempted to use the same spell Sirius had used, but he quickly ducked under the table. Standing back up as quickly as he could without losing his aim he prepared to fight back "flipendo" his spell threw the girl back and over a table, a loud crash was all the confirmation James needed that she was out the fight.

The boy however was not and cast a spell back at James "locomotor wibbly" the spell struck James right in the chest and he quickly reached out with his free arm to hold himself up against the table, his legs now feeling like jelly.

Thinking quickly he aimed his wand at the boy face "furnunculus" as soon as the spell impacted, bright spots began to materialise and the boy cried in pain. James prepared to join Sirius, who he saw was the only other standing Slytherin, when professor Slughorn returned, wand in hand.

"enough! I will not have violence in my classroom" the professor made his way through the rows of desks, casting the counters for the various spells used. After shrinking Nathaniel's teeth he double checked if he had missed anyone before continuing "You must put whatever squabbles you have behind you, or at least do not settle them in my class with dangerous potions and ingredients all around. I am taking twenty points from each of you involved. I hope that this does not happen again" the professor sounded strangely calm the second time he spoke, almost as if he was trying to placate the students. Several students in the room had already been scouted for the Slug Club and James doubted he would want to lose any of them due to the rivalry.

What shocked everyone though was the light punishment they had received from Slughorn. The other professors would have assigned detentions or perhaps contacted the students parents on top of losing a lot more than just twenty house points.

Later that day, during dinner, the Slytherins sat down in there usual spots. Snape was once more nowhere to be seen however. As the feast appeared in front of them as it usually did, a set of identical letters also appeared. On a hunch James glanced over at the Hufflepuff table, there first years had received the same letters.

Bringing his attention back to the Slytherin table, he saw Sirius already reading his letter, frowning as he did.

"Let me guess, detention?" James asked.

"Yep, with Professor McGonagall. Two months of spending our evenings with her" Sirius replied distastefully.

It was then James noticed something "why haven't you got a letter Evan?"

The other boy turned round, smirking "myself, Theodora and Natasha did the right thing and informed a professor of the ruckus in the classroom. We had no part to play in your squabble"

"You bloody traitor" Sirius all but growled.

"Actually, I would say it was rather cunning of me" Evan replied.

Rather than watch what was bound to be a heated argument, James acted on a gut feeling to check his own letter.

The first part was rather generic, talking about how his behaviour was poor and he had acted wrongly. The second part however, detailed his punishment. He had only a single detention, tonight, with Professor Dumbledore.

He froze, his mind focused on what the headmaster could want with him in particular. An admission of guilt? A scapegoat for the whole thing? In his head horrible situation after horrible situation played out.

"James? Can you hear me?" Looking to his left, he saw Nathaniel, staring at him with concern.

"Yeah, sorry. I just looked at my letter. It says I've got a detention with Dumbledore instead of McGonagall" Nathaniel looked puzzled for a moment.

"Does he think you did something worse?"

"I'm not sure. I've only got the one detention as well. What will the others think?" James asked.

"We were all there James, we know you did nothing that Sirius or Ophelia didn't do" Nathaniel replied with a slight smirk, It didn't reach his eyes however. James could only imagine what the other boy must be feeling, with the memories of his missing brother dragged to the surface.

James turned back to his best friend, who was now arguing with Evan in a barely hushed tone "Could you explain what's happening to Sirius when he's finished please?" He asked, turning back to Nathaniel.

The other boy simply nodded in reply. James didn't eat much after that, instead occasionally picking at his food to pass the time. Inevitably however, the feast came to an end. He had ultimately been unable to talk to Sirius, in the end he had to be moved further down the Slytherin table by a prefect to avoid making a scene.

At the end of the hall, professors McGonagall and Goodwinter were waiting. While the rest of the students flooded back to there common rooms, the first year Slytherins and Hufflepuffs slowly came to a halt in front of the two professors. The group wordlessly followed the Head of Gryffindor towards wherever there detention may be, leaving just James and the other professor. She sneered at him before leading him towards what was presumably the headmasters office.

James didn't notice how long the journey was, or how short. The only thing he was focused on was what the headmaster could want with him and now what his punishment might entail. A single detention was getting off far too easy, was he going to be expelled? Have his wand snapped? The more he thought, the worse the potential scenarios became.

Suddenly, Professor Goodwinter came to a halt, beside her a gargoyle in a cramped chamber "liquorice wand" she said abruptly and the gargoyle began to rotate, forming a staircase. As it stopped moving, the professor made no effort to continue. James moved forward, hesitantly at first, afraid he might be doing the wrong thing. But the professor simply stared at him till he went up the first few steps before turning around and marching away.

As he reached the top of the staircase, he noticed a single door. He could hear voices on the other side, but they were far too quiet for him to make out what was being said. He frowned, feeling concerned and curious as to why someone else would be there for his detention. He brought his fist up and knocked on the door sharply "enter" replied Professor Dumbledore, his voice clear as though he was stood next to James. All other voices, he noticed, had suddenly gone silent.

James opened the door, speaking as he did "you wished to see me pro" he stopped suddenly as he finally saw the source of the other voices. Sat either side of a vacant chair in front of the professors desk, were his parents.

They both stared at him. His father, who he remembered always looking so friendly and kind, was staring at him with a hard look. While his mother simply looked hurt. Any trace of affection was gone from either one of them, the one trait he cherished of his parents. He noticed his father glance down at his robes, his eyes burning a hole through the snake woven into them.

The headmaster however, seemed completely different to when he had last seen him up close, gone was the powerful and commanding wizard instead replaced with a kind, elderly but still respectful man with a sort of twinkle in his eye that gave him the overall appearance of a doting grandfather. "ah James, please come in" James hesitantly made his way towards Dumbledore's desk, his parents eyes never leaving him.

He took the vacant seat between his parents and a feeling of dread set in. He began to turn towards his mother, only for her to look away sharply, tears beginning to form in her eyes. Reluctantly James turned towards his father, he seemed to be getting increasingly angry with everything to do with his only son.

"do you know why I have summoned you this evening James" the headmaster broke the silence.

"er, because of the fight in the potions classroom sir?" he replied, slightly confused.

Dumbledore chuckled "in a sense yes. I brought you here so that you and your parents could have a discussion. They are very concerned about certain influences in your life"

"Influences sir?"

"Don't try to hide it James, we raised you better than this. We never raised you to spend your time around bigots and inbreds" James' father interrupted, his voice containing a barely concealed anger.

"n..no dad its not like that. Sirius is my best friend, Ophelia and Nathaniel are my close friends as well. Yes they're purebloods but there good people too. We're purebloods but we're good as well"

"Good are they? Multiple complaints from students of use of the M word, accusations of blood traitor, they sound very good! And what about the influence they have over you. Before you went to Hogwarts, you were attentive to your studies, you were well behaved but now your grades are slipping and your starting fights in the classroom!" James' father concluded his accusation with his voice reaching a thunderous roar, James had never seen nor heard his father this angry before, what he had witnessed stunned him into silence for a few moments.

Dumbledore used the silence to launch a calmer appeal "James, from what your parents and professors have told me, it is clear that being in Slytherin has changed you and perhaps it is not for the better. There is a way out however. Although it is rare, students can change house. The only issue however is that a rule put in place by the governors ensures that it can only be your decision. You have an opportunity to choose a better path" James was shocked, not only was he surprised this was an option but also that the professor would suggest it at such a tense moment, if James were to say the wrong thing it could end very badly for him. Sensing the look on his face, Dumbledore continued "your parents have already given you permission to stay at the castle over the Christmas period. You have until Christmas day to make your decision"

Christmas Day, he had weeks to decide what he would do but somehow James thought it would not be enough time. He allowed the rest of the discussion to wash over him, a short but emotional appeal by his mother and a stern warning from his father before being dismissed by Dumbledore. James did not really allow himself to breath until he was back in the corridor and the gargoyle was locked firmly back in place. He had to talk to Sirius.

**A/N apologies it took so long to get this chapter out (I'm pretty sure its my longest) but I hope it was worth it. I really wanted this to advance James' personal story along and begin to develop the sort of relationship he would be having with his parents in the future. I hope everyone enjoys this and I will admit now that a realistic goal for the next chapter will probably be late March/early April. No matter how often I try I just can't get into a system of one chapter a month. But I digress. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter and please leave a review or message me with any suggestions for improving my writing/what you liked./ways to make me write more and flesh stuff out. **


	7. Chapter 7

In the weeks following the incident the first years did not have any potions classes, instead this time became an extra study period for all those except the ones still in detention, who spent this time cleaning and sorting for Professor Slughorn. During this time James had felt the loneliness setting in again. Sirius, Nathaniel and Ophelia had these detentions till January now and Professor Dumbledore had not accepted the youngest Blacks decision to stay at the castle over Christmas. The other Slytherin first years were still avoiding him like the plague, constantly questioning him about why he had gotten off so lightly, something James was reluctant to talk about. For the first few days of his isolation it wasn't too bad, he could still sit with Sirius in class and in the evenings spend time with Bellatrix but, as if they noticed the flaw in Dumbledore's plan, his professors began to move him at the start of every lesson to sit with a student from another house, which rarely went well. In the evenings as well, he was once more isolated as Bellatrix was given detentions till Christmas for being caught saying Mudblood.

But James was determined to make the best of it, Dumbledore wanted him to cave in and thus take the choice away from him, something James was adamant would not happen. Using the extra time to study, he had actually improved his grades further but that brought him little comfort when he had no one to talk to, to share his achievements with. There was the heart of the issue, did he choose another house and restore the bond with his parents, or stand his ground and eventually regain his friends. One thing James was certain of however, he had never been this divided over any issue in his life and it was slowly eating away at him.

James glanced up, seeing the Gryffindor first years begin to move out of the great hall and knew it was time for him to make a move as well. He put down his toast and pushed his dilemma to another part of his mind. James then turned to the very front of the Slytherin table, where his friends were now forced to sit alongside any other troublemakers, he briefly made eye contact with Sirius and gestured to him that it was time to leave, Sirius offered a weak smile in return. Today would be the first potions lesson since the fight and they would now be sharing a class with the Gryffindors, in fact they would be sharing almost all there lessons with Gryffindors from this week forward, in an effort to prevent another fight with Hufflepuff.

As he made his way back down to the dungeon, James had a few moments where he could finally talk with his friends, Sirius made his way to his side as soon as they were clear of the great hall and the prying eyes of the professors "How are you feeling?" Sirius asked.

"awful. They've made my life hell and the worst part is we can barely talk to each other now" James replied.

Sirius dropped his usual smirk "Well its only for a few more weeks, I've spoken to my parents and if you can get out of the castle for Christmas they're more than happy to take you in"

James sighed " you know I appreciate you trying but Dumbledore has worked with my parents to make sure I don't have any other options. No, I'm afraid we're stuck like this until the end of January"

"Maybe, I'm working on another plan" Sirius began to smirk again and James found it infectious. The two spent what precious little time they still had to talk just chatting about Quidditch.

The classroom seemed cleaner and more organised than James remembered it. Clearly the work of those still in detention. The professor however seemed quite annoyed, especially when he saw the remaining Slytherins arrive.

"Uh, could you lot follow me please, you shall be having a private lesson with professor Dumbledore today" James turned to join his friends in heading back outside when he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder "not you James, you shall be staying with the other slytherins" with the hope of spending more time with his friends once again gone, James turned and studied the class.

He didn't recognise many of the Gryffindors who occupied the left side of the room, but on the right were Theodora and Natasha sat together on the front row with Evan sat behind them. What was more puzzling however was that Severus had actually decided to turn up to class today and was sitting with a Gryffindor no less. James was shocked to say the least but he could not shake the feeling that he recognised her red hair.

He moved to sit with Evan, taking the only spare seat that allowed him to have a work partner, but stopped when he saw the other boy place his bag on the stool next to him, clearly indicating he would rather sit alone. James heard the professor return and quietly close the door "ah I believe a change in the seating arrangement is in order" there was a collective groan from the class and James felt his stomach drop as he realised he would have to spend yet another lesson with a stranger who hated him" Severus could you move to sit with Evan please, James would you be so kind as to take his place" James heard the professor asking some of the Gryffindors to move as well but he wasn't paying enough attention to care.

Severus turned to James as he got up, a scowl etched onto his face, clearly he was unhappy to be moved which did not surprise James, Evan hated Severus more than Sirius did. Reluctantly, James began to move towards the now vacant stool, slinging his bag from his shoulder as he did. At first he didn't pay much attention to the Gryffindor sat next to him, instead thinking about how he was going to go forward these next few months. He heard the girl next to him quietly clear her throat and he finally looked over to her and suddenly it hit him. This was the girl that Severus seemed to be friends with, the same girl who he had seen in the sorting ceremony.

"Hello my name is Lily, I know we got off on the wrong foot last time, but if you got to know me and Severus we could get along" she said with a sort of confidence that was different to what he was used to in Slytherin. Instead of holding an air of superiority, she sounded very friendly.

James noticed she was beginning to look uneasy as he realised he had just sat there and stared without replying "uh hello, I'm James" he replied in a hushed tone, not wanting Evan to hear him.

Lily began to smile "hi James, for a moment I thought you were just going to ignore me. But I had a feeling you wouldn't, you really didn't sound confident when you insulted Frank"

"are you and Severus close?" he asked, already sensing the answer.

"yes, he was my first magical friend and the first one to tell me I was a witch" she replied happily "Do you know Severus well? He tells me he doesn't have any friends in Slytherin but he's too much of a nice person to not have at least one friend"

James was shocked, Severus being nice? "erm, I mean I thought I was his friend but if I'm honest I don't know him too well"

Lily seemed to stiffen at his reply " Just because he's not a pureblood does not mean you all have to be so mean to him"

James raised his hands to defend himself "no, no you misunderstand me. I haven't seen him since then let alone spoken to him" Lily's face seemed to soften again at his reply.

"so if given the opportunity would you like to talk to him again? I know he would really appreciate a friend in his own house" Once again James was presented with a choice, a choice far too close to his current predicament. It felt like a betrayal of everyone he had grown to care for if he said yes but there was something about this girl, it was as if he already knew her or was meant to know her.

"okay, it would be nice to know how he's been" James replied, apprehensively.

"brilliant, meet us in the disused classroom on the second floor, the one by the statue of Merlin after the afternoon lessons" Lily smiled, really smiled at James and he felt butterflies in his stomach. A feeling soon replaced by the crushing guilt of his choice. He would have to pray that Evan didn't hear him.

The professor finished up his preparations and began the lesson, preventing James and Lily from talking much more but the foundations had been set and there was no turning back now.

The rest of the day passed relatively quickly, James was once more seated with a different student each lesson, unlike Lily they all seemed to judge him before speaking to him and the uncomfortable silence he was slowly growing used to returned.

By the time transfiguration ended, James was beginning to get nervous again. Unlike most of the classes, this one was shared with Ravenclaw so at least he did not have to follow Lily there. That would have aroused far too much suspicion. He began debating in his head whether this was a good idea, the hurt faces of his friends flashing through his mind, but all the while his legs carried him to the second floor. He barely noticed the stares or scornful looks from other students at the lone Slytherin wondering through the castle.

He had arrived, but something was stopping him from knocking on the door, it was as if some invisible force was preventing him from taking this step. This was it and James was completely uncertain.

He could hear raised voices, muffled through the thick oak door, but he did not pay much attention to them. Perhaps he could just turn around now and pretend this never happened. At least he knew Severus was okay and had a friend he could turn to. But before James could move his hand, which had been hovering in the air, the door flung open to reveal Severus trying to leave, a guilty Lily behind him trying to grab his hand. Upon seeing him both reacted differently. Severus seemed angry, but it didn't reach his eyes, they looked scared but it was easily the most emotional James had ever seen him. Lily on the other hand seemed relieved "see Severus he has turned up after all"

This did not seem to calm the other boy down "yes and I'm sure he's brought the rest of that rotten lot with him, have you come to beat me up Potter? Cast spells at me? I don't care! Just leave Lily alone!" he finished shouting right at James' face before the other boy had even had a chance to say hello.

Before James could reply Lily retorted "Severus please, I asked James to come here. He wanted to talk to you. Please just give him a chance, I would feel a lot better if you had a friend in your house" Severus signed before turning away from James, the other boy began to feel awkward. Perhaps it was due to how emotive Severus was being or because of the argument in front of him, James wasn't sure but it didn't matter.

"Lily, please listen to me. I know what they're like, I know what they believe in. This will only end badly" Lily however only seemed more determined.

"You're the one starting to sound like a bigot, not all Slytherins are like that Severus, unless you are too" Severus seemed deeply hurt by this remark who slowly moved away from the door and gestured for James to come in. The three of them sat at a large table near the front of the classroom before descending into an awkward silence. Slowly however, Lily dragged the two reluctant boys into a tentative conversation which carried on for the rest of the night. It would be a long time before they would consider each other friends but the foundations had been laid.

Sneaking back to the Slytherin tower had seemed much easier than the walk up from the dungeons. Severus had been staying in some secret room that was somehow conjuring a bed which explained why he wouldn't be joining James on the walk back or why he hadn't been seen in the Slytherin common room for quite some time. James silently made his way to the first-year boys' room and opened the door. Inside he found most of his fellow first years asleep already, bar one, Sirius was sat up on his bed a book in his hands and looked up at James with his regular smirk "I was wondering when you would come back. I hope you've been up to no good"

Normally James would have found the smirk infectious but tonight it only made him feel incredibly guilty "I was in the library studying. I must have lost track of time" the look of sadness on his friends face caused Sirius to be quite concerned.

"are you okay? You don't seem yourself. Is it your parents again?" he asked.

"no…it's just being isolated like this can get a little much sometimes" well at least it was partially true, thought James.

"bugger. I hate Dumbeldore for doing all of this, the interfering prick. I wasn't going to tell you till closer to the time but I've been working on a way to make sure you have someone here for you at the castle over Christmas. I won't tell you who yet though"

James felt even worse now, he was betraying his best friend as the very same friend was helping him "thanks Sirius"

"don't worry about it, its what friends do" James got into bed before the conversation could continue, he wasn't sure if he could handle the guilt much longer if they hadn't have stopped talking.

**A/N Now I have a number of very good reasons as to why this chapter took so long, but I'll spare you all the details and just say that the main reason was that I lost this chapter due to an issue with my computer and was only able to partially recover it, forcing me to re-write a big chunk. Sorry for the delay but I hope you all enjoy the chapter and as always if you have anything you would like to highlight, good or bad, please let me know. **


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